The Hang Seng closed almost flat at 24,911 on Wednesday after dipping slightly in morning deals. Traders digested comments from President Trump, who said the U.S. was close to a trade deal with China and that he would meet President Xi before year-end if an agreement is reached. Investors also looked ahead to key Chinese economic data, including trade figures on Thursday and inflation on Saturday, amid concerns over rising trade barriers and persistent deflation risks. At the same time, markets braced for a possible new U.S. tariff announcement targeting semiconductors and chips, expected...
Silver extended gains to 13-year highs and platinum reached the highest since early 2022, signaling growing investor appetite for precious metals used in key industries. Spot prices for both metals continued to rally on Friday after spikes of more than 4% in the previous session. Gold edged higher at a slower pace. The metals were aided by technical momentum as well as improving fundamentals, with a strong appetite for physical silver in India and resurgent Chinese platinum demand reinforcing the rallies, according to a note by Nicky Shiels, head of metals...
Oil prices remained steadfastly glued to $65 a barrel, as they have been for more than three weeks, with easing trade tensions helping offset concerns about a brewing supply glut later this year. Brent inched lower, but held on to most of its gains from Thursday and was on track for its first weekly increase since mid-May. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, agreed to further trade talks over tariffs and supplies of rare earth minerals. The positive signals come against the backdrop of an oil market that has been increasingly rangebound over...
Gold prices rose on Friday and were headed for a positive week as haven demand was underpinned by uncertainty over U.S. trade policy and caution before a key U.S. payrolls reading. Bullion, along with broader metal prices, also benefited from a softer dollar, which languished near two-year lows amid few positive cues over the U.S. economy. A sharp sell-down on Wall Street, which was triggered by an escalated, public feud between President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, also boosted risk appetite. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $3,368.86 an ounce, while gold futures for August rose 0.5%...
The AUD/USD pair is trading around 0.6510 on Friday. The Australian Dollar (AUD) declines against the US Dollar (USD). The AUD/USD pair may remain stable amid market caution, as traders await the upcoming US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report, due later in the day, seeking fresh insights into the United States (US) economy. Market sentiment improved following a productive phone call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump expressed that the call was productive and prepared to continue tariff negotiations. However, Trump and his team struggled to stay composed...
Silver held near a 13-year high, supported by a technical breakout that also drove platinum to the highest level since 2022, signaling growing investor appetite for precious metals used by the industrial sector. Spot silver rose as much as 4.5% on Thursday to $36.06 an ounce — the highest since February 2012 — while platinum surged 4.8% to above $1,146 an ounce. Prices on Friday held close to those peaks. The metals were aided by technical momentum across the metals complex as well as improving fundamentals, with strong appetite for physical silver in India and resurgent...